AN Odiham mother with a passion for tennis joined one of the biggest names in the sport to help drive a nationwide push to get more girls into the game.  

Sarah Rutherford joined tennis matriarch Judy Murray at an event in Bristol on behalf of She Rallies, an organisation that the mother of Andy and Jamie founded with the LTA two years ago to retain and increase the number of female players and coaches across the UK.

The She Rallies event which saw over 100 teenage girls take part in a range of tennis activities and 60 women trained to become She Rallies activators – volunteers tasked with running community-based tennis programmes for girls – was one of a number taking place across the country over the summer.

The events are part of a drive to recruit 2,500 women from all backgrounds to train as activators over the next year, with around 400 expected to come from the South-West.

Judy Murray said: “It’s been a fantastic day and really showed the passion in this part of the world to get more women and girls involved in tennis. Having positive female role models as coaches, particularly at community level, is absolutely vital to achieving this.

“We’re calling on women across a range of towns and cities, including Farnham and Basingstoke, who want to inspire girls to pick up a racket and play the game, to get in touch with us.

“You don’t have to have a background in tennis to be involved, just passionate about giving girls the opportunity to take part in the game and all the fantastic benefits that it can bring – and it’s all free.”

Sarah Rutherford is the ‘She Rallies ambassador for Hampshire’ and also captains the county’s U10 girls team. She said: “Being asked to become ambassador for Hampshire was the proudest moment of my coaching career. It it was amazing to spend time with Judy and see first-hand her passion for getting more women into tennis.

“I’d urge anyone who wants to get more girls active and playing tennis in their area to get involved. It’s such a rewarding experience.”

A number of local courses are taking place for women aged over 18 to train as activators. To sign up for a course, visit sherallies.com/get- involved/